CSUF baseball have eyes set for success in Arizona

The Cal State Fullerton baseball team is set to kick off their season this weekend as they will be one of four teams to participate in the first ever MLB4 tournament held at the Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Salt River Field is the shared home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies spring training facilities, according to the MLB website.

Vanderbilt University, the University of Virginia and Texas Christian University will also be participating in the tournament.CSUF will play each school once, with opportunities to dethrone teams ranked on the coaches’ preseason rankings.

(Taylor Arthur / Daily Titan)

The Titans will open the showcase against Texas Christian University on Friday at 1 p.m.

Fullerton ranks below TCU in the USA Today Sports Baseball Coaches Poll. The Titans are ranked 24th, sitting second to lost on the ranking chart while the Horned Frogs sit higher on the charts at 14th.

To close out the weekend, Fullerton will face Virginia on Sunday at 3 p.m. While Virginia did not rank within the Top 25, they are coming out of a successful 2018 campaign finishing their year with a win percentage above .500.

To end their season, the Cavaliers split a pair of games in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship falling to then-ranked ninth Florida State University. However, the team bounced back to defeat North Carolina State University.

Tony Reagins, executive vice president of baseball and softball development of Major League Baseball, said he is pleased with the MLB’s involvement in collegiate athletics.

“College baseball is a cornerstone of our sport’s pipeline, and it is important that we continue to emphasize attention toward this segment of the game,” Reagins said.” The four programs selected to participate in this inaugural event are among the best and we are excited to bring a great product to fans in Arizona this February.”

Game highlights and live stream of every MLB4 game can be viewed at MLB.com/MLB4.

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